Became The Sultan Of The Ottoman Empire [EN]: Chapter 53

Became Sultan of Osman – Episode 53 (53/213)

Another Stroke of Luck (1)

Elbistan, its once-rich plains scorched and its long-accumulated wealth plundered.

Maras, where Bozkurt Bey, the ruler of Dulkadir, had fled.

The two cities were close enough to reach in two or three days on horseback.

At a cavalry’s marching speed, they could arrive in a single day if they rode at full speed.

When the distance is this close, you can practically anticipate each other’s movements.

The hot, dry weather subsided, and as the cool autumn air arrived, Ismail, who had been biding his time in Elbistan, mobilized his army.

Leaving two thousand Qizilbash [members of a Shia militant group] to defend Elbistan, Ismail marched slowly, plundering the surrounding area, openly signaling that he had no intention of overextending himself to capture Maras.

Maras, having immediately confirmed this, also set out, and as planned, the army that departed from Maras split into three.

“Mahmud.”

“What is it?”

The forces were divided with Bozkurt leading thirteen thousand troops in the center, Ahmed and Korkut leading five thousand on the right, and Selim and Mahmud leading five thousand on the left.

Since Ahmed and Korkut were allies, Selim and Mahmud were paired together.

“Aren’t you frustrated that we’re wasting time day after day?”

“Hasn’t everything been going according to plan so far?”

As the enemy divided into three, Ismail, who was leading eighteen thousand Qizilbash, also split his army.

He sent four thousand soldiers to each side and confronted Bozkurt directly with ten thousand soldiers.

What followed was a kind of psychological warfare.

“How long can this situation continue?”

Between the princes, who could retreat to walled cities if necessary, and the Qizilbash, who were wary of sieges, a battle of wits unfolded, using troop movements a dozen times a day.

It wouldn’t be surprising if a mistake occurred at any moment, and the cumulative damage from small-scale skirmishes during the psychological warfare was also a problem.

“And aren’t we both in a position where we need to prove ourselves?”

Mahmud sneered at Selim’s words.

“Since when have we been on the same side?”

“Yes, we’re not exactly friendly. But wouldn’t you rather compete with me than with Ahmed, brother?”

With a dubious expression, Mahmud nodded.

Ahmed, who had formed an alliance with Korkut and was receiving more attention, was the most threatening rival.

Moreover, since his territory, Saruhan, was the closest to the capital, he figured it was okay to temporarily join hands with Selim.

“So, what are you suggesting?”

Selim glanced at the setting sun and said,

“Tonight, we’ll launch a night raid.”

“Do you know how ridiculous that sounds? What kind of night raid can you pull off when the enemy is on high alert?”

No matter how dark the night, if they moved to prepare for a night raid, the enemy would immediately notice, and it would be like inviting the fight they had been avoiding.

Despite Mahmud’s opposition, Selim replied nonchalantly.

“Who said anything about targeting them? The target I’m talking about is the enemy that our two brothers are facing.”

They moved in opposite directions, but the distance wasn’t that great.

It was a distance that could be covered in about two or three hours if they hurried, making the plan entirely feasible.

“Alright. Then we’ll have to set up our camp a little further away.”

That way, even if they realize the plan late and follow, it would be manageable.

The princes, who had received guides familiar with the local geography from Bozkurt, could move even at night, but the enemy, without a proper guide, would have a hard time following.

Once the plan was confirmed, the two princes intentionally created some distance and set up camp.

As the sun set, both sides set up camp further away than usual, but the scouts, acting as eyes and ears, kept watch on the enemy camp.

Preparing for a night raid was a basic tactic.

However, this time, such a response was meaningless.

Thud!

The soldiers patrolling the camp casually propped up the tents, and as if on cue, rustling sounds came from inside.

Shortly after, the tinkling of bells echoed through the camp, and soldiers who had removed the tents poured out.

“Immediately inform them! It’s a night raid!”

The scout leader’s cry prompted the waiting scouts to quickly mount their horses and set off at full speed towards their own camp.

The leader, relieved to see his subordinate leave, felt a sense of unease as he watched the enemy soldiers mounting their horses.

The direction the enemy’s horses were heading was strange.

“Damn it! We’ve been tricked!”

Realization always comes late, and the enemy was already fully prepared to advance.

As if there was no more time to waste, five thousand cavalrymen began their march with the sound of thundering hooves.

Marching at night when the ground is barely visible is extremely dangerous.

Soldiers fell behind as the guide led them on the shortest route rather than the safest one.

Some soldiers fell from their horses and were trampled to death by the hooves of their allies, and a tragic accident occurred when a horse stumbled and about half a dozen cavalrymen following behind crashed to the ground.

The soldiers who had lost their comrades in vain gritted their teeth and advanced, and they were able to spot a brightly lit camp in the distance.

“Allah! [God]”

“Charge!”

The enemy, who had rushed out of their tents in a hurry due to the ground shaking that had alerted them to the attack faster than anything else, was already too late.

Mahmud, whose face had been filled with joy as he approached the enemy, soon widened his eyes.

Unlike his soldiers, who were advancing towards the enemy camp, the soldiers following Selim changed direction and brushed past the camp.

“Seliim!!!”

He knew he had been tricked, but it was too late to change direction now.

Mahmud’s soldiers, with their teeth clenched, swept through the enemy, who were floundering from the unexpected attack.

However, two thousand cavalrymen were not enough to break through the enemy lines.

As expected of the elite Qizilbash, they immediately attempted to respond, and their progress was halted in the middle of the enemy lines.

Selim, watching the enemy lines where the sounds of clashing swords, screams, and shouts could be heard, sneered.

“You pathetic fool.”

What kind of relationship did they have that he would trust him?

Selim, who had passed the enemy camp and turned around, pointed his drawn sword at the enemy lines, which were in utter chaos.

“Wipe them all out.”

At Selim’s command, the soldiers calmed their panting horses and increased their speed.

Selim’s soldiers, who had ambushed the enemy’s rear, swept through the enemy lines, regardless of friend or foe.

It was a battle that started with a night raid, but the Qizilbash fought fiercely as their reputation suggested.

Three thousand Sipahi [Ottoman cavalry soldiers] were sacrificed to kill three thousand Qizilbash.

Two thousand of them were Mahmud’s soldiers who had been betrayed, but Selim’s losses, who had lost a third of his forces, were not small either.

However, Selim didn’t care. He had achieved his goal.

“You died in vain without even leaving a proper corpse, brother.”

Selim, clutching the clothes of Mahmud, who had been trampled to death beyond recognition, wore a deep smile.

Selim had fought a battle that could be described as a victory, but Ismail was not to be underestimated either.

Bozkurt, who had been tricked by Ismail’s scheme, suffered a crushing defeat, losing nearly nine thousand soldiers.

As both sides suffered unexpected losses, the war entered a lull.

***

Sacrificing the lives of others for one’s own purposes is a matter of course for the rulers of this era.

Even war is something that an unwanted majority gets caught up in for the sake of the goals of a few in power.

Yusuf also had no intention of fearing sacrifices for the sake of his goals.

‘To put it coldly, a ruler who fears sacrifices cannot survive.’

Even in the Ottoman Empire, if a prince declared that he would not kill his brothers, would they applaud?

Rather, the one who made such a weak statement was more likely to die without anyone knowing.

However, he did not enjoy unnecessary sacrifices that were unrelated to his goals.

‘It may be hypocrisy in some ways.’

He had devastated many villages and committed looting as he came down here.

As the operation required mobility, supplies had to be procured locally, and the purpose of this operation was to strike at the Safavids [a Persian dynasty].

He wasn’t thick-skinned enough to say that he had shown mercy because he hadn’t committed slaughter against people who had lost their livelihoods and were grieving.

It was just self-satisfaction and the minimum of humanity he was holding onto.

“Arda, from here, we’ll split up and move.”

They had already entered the Diyarbakir territory, and from now on, it was a real race against time.

They had to inflict as much damage as possible and get out.

“Is it okay if I don’t go with you?”

“It’s okay. Even if it’s not you, there are reliable people with me.”

He trusted Arda, the Sobashi [commander] of Trabzon, the most, but that didn’t mean that the other Sobashis were lacking.

There were plenty of people to fill Arda’s vacancy.

“Don’t worry about me, and if the enemy’s movements are detected as planned, return to Erzincan without hesitation.”

Diyarbakir is deep within enemy territory. It could be very dangerous if the enemy caught them.

‘At most, it’ll be two days.’

Because of their flamboyant passage, it was only a matter of time before news of them reached the nearby cities of Bingol and Elazig.

If armies were to set out from those two places, their retreat route could be blocked.

Arda, setting aside Yusuf’s concerns, paid his respects politely.

“Please return safely. I’ll see you in Erzincan.”

“Yes, come back with your pockets full.”

Yusuf, replying playfully, set off with two thousand Sipahi towards the west of Diyarbakir.

***

Tearing through the villages near Diyarbakir without even encountering significant resistance was too easy.

Those who had never imagined that the enemy would invade so deeply mistook Yusuf’s two thousand cavalry for Qizilbash instead of Sipahi.

Yusuf, who had been looting for two days without much effort, was about to return.

He had already had as much “fun” as he could, and it wasn’t an important operation worth taking risks.

That would have been the case if Yusuf hadn’t spotted a peculiar group.

“Suspicious.”

The group was moving with a large carriage, and the number of people alone exceeded a hundred.

When two thousand cavalrymen suddenly appeared, the other party stopped in a panic, and Yusuf shouted.

“Kill all those who resist.”

“Ha!”

The escorts were skilled, as if they were protecting something special, but their numbers were far too small to stop two thousand Sipahi.

Yusuf, watching the enemy escorts fall, saw a woman getting out of the carriage and drew the gun that was fixed to his horse.

-Bang!

“Kyaaak!”

The woman and her maids, who had heard the thunderous gunshot for the first time, sat down on the ground.

The woman, who had missed even the smallest chance to escape, looked around at the blood-soaked surroundings and glared fiercely, and Yusuf stepped down in front of her.

“I don’t know who you are, but Allah will not forgive you!”

“I’m tired of hearing that curse.”

Yusuf, replying indifferently, firmly grabbed the woman’s raised hand and pulled down the hijab [veil] that was covering her face.

When the cat-like face with fiercely raised eyes was revealed, one of the trembling maids cried out as if screaming.

“Kha, Khanum! [Lady/Noble Woman]”

“Shut up!”

The woman, called Khanum, shouted with an angry face, but it was already too late.

Khanum was a title attached to women of high rank. For example, royalty.

Yusuf raised the woman’s chin with his hand and asked.

“What’s your name?”

“…Shah [Persian title for King] will not forgive you.”

Seeing the woman threatening him by mentioning Ismail, a name flashed through Yusuf’s mind.

“Could it be Tazlu Khanum?”

Seeing the woman startled by this question, Yusuf felt a headache coming on.

Tazlu Khanum was the woman Ismail loved most in the harem [private living quarters reserved for women].

‘It’s a stroke of luck to meet like this, but…’

He was worried about whether it would be okay to kidnap her.